Family Matters

Recently I entered a few paintings in a show at the Raven Gallery, http://ravenfineart.blogspot.com/ called Family Matters where this painting took 1st place! Needless to say this was a great day for me as I have never before had anything in a gallery much less in a show. Turns out the gallery feels right for me and I now have 6 pieces there. So if you're in Pewaukee on Capital drive, come on in! It's right next to Panera Bread where you can get a sandwich and your favorite coffee either before or after spending time viewing some amazing art by some very fine artists.

Back to the painting. It is a 24 x 18 oil on linen titled, In Their Element and is of my 2 sisters walking on the road in front of a 3rd sister's home in Arbor Vite, WI. Four sisters and a cousin had gathered to spend the weekend together as we try to do at least a couple of times a year. Teresa and Paula, depicted here, are as close in heart as 2 sisters can be, though they live 5 hours apart. That, plus the fact that as a family we all love the outdoors, put them truly in their element as they walked together on this frigid, February morning!

Spirals

I’ve always had a love of spirals. They represent evolution, letting go, and holistic growth. And they tend to show up in my paintings.

It’s apparent in the underpainting of Emma in the apple tree even though you may not be aware of it in the finished work. As my painting develops, Emma begins to emerge from the branches. (If you continue the spiral of the overarching branch, you will see that Emma’s form is at its unfolding center.)

Life doesn’t evolve in a linear fashion. It unfolds. Like a spiral. Like the new frond of the fern, unraveling into being. Like a 13 year old not-yet woman.

The same is true of ideas. They circle out and around, bump up against ideas on the outer edge (the “far out there” ones), dance a bit with the insanity, and loop back in to connect with other ideas at the safer, saner, “middle of the road.” On the way around, connections are made between seemingly disconnected thoughts, and new patterns and possibilities emerge from the interplay. Before long, a clearer picture develops as pieces of the puzzle come together to create a spectacular whole.

Today as I add more detail to the figure, I will also begin the refining of the tree. Step by step, the creative process unfolds.

It's Official!

I am now ready to officially begin calling myself an artist. It's about time. Not only is my new website up & running, (www.darleneweaver.com) I was given the opportunity to display some of my paintings for the first time since I was the guest artist at my son's photography studio (www.apex-studios.com) a few years ago. All I had to show back then were works that I had done over 25 years ago.

Luke Wein from Beyond Studio + Publishing (www.beyond-studio.com) called on Thursday morning to say that he had reserved space at the Waukesha & Pewaukee Convention & Visitors Bureau. He was kind enough to offer it to me for the whole month of May.

So I spent the weekend finishing the website, making business cards, and framing paintings. Monday morning I loaded up my car and dropped off 4 pieces. I had 8 with me but one was very large and I didn't want to overcrowd the space. I will return in a week or so and switch a few of them. This is so much fun. In case you are reading this, Luke, thanks again for the opportunity.

After spending that last couple of days working on a mailing list and catching up on yard work, I am ready to get back to the painting that I started almost a week ago. As I do I will remind myself to let go and let the flow of energy take over and guide me through the next stroke, and the next, and the next. As with life, the creative act is about the process. The dream might be the "destination" but it's the steps that we take to get there that matter. As I watch my dream unfold and evolve, I marvel at what occurs when I let go of the need to control and simply have a soft focus on the guidance that is coming from within and a trust in the synchronicity occurring without.